pop_culturefandomcom-20200223-history
Royal Institution Christmas Lectures
delivering a Christmas Lecture in 1856.]] The Royal Institution Christmas Lectures are a series of lectures on a single topic, which have been held at the Royal Institution in London each year since 1825, missing 1939–42 due to the Second World War. The lectures present scientific subjects to a general audience, including young people, in an informative and entertaining manner. Michael Faraday initiated the first Christmas Lecture series in 1825. This came at a time when organised education for young people was scarce. Faraday presented a total of nineteen series in all. History ".]] The Royal Institution's Christmas Lectures were first held in 1825, and have continued on an annual basis since then with the exception of during the Second World War. They are hosted each year at the Royal Institution itself, with the exception of during 1929 and between 2005–2006, each time due to refurbishment of the building. They were created by Michael Faraday, and he went on to host the lecture season on nineteen occasions. Other notable lecturers have included Desmond Morris (1964), Sir David Attenborough (1973), Heinz Wolff (1975), Carl Sagan (1977), George Porter (1985), Richard Dawkins (1991), Baroness Susan Greenfield (1994), Dame Nancy Rothwell (1998), Monica Grady (2003), Sue Hartley (2009), Alison Woollard (2013), and Danielle George (2014). Professor from Newcastle becomes only sixth woman to present Royal Institution Christmas Lectures, Newcastle Chronicle, 2014-08-19 The props for the lectures are designed and created by the Ri's science demonstration technician, a post which Faraday previously held. The technician is informed of the general subject of the lectures during spring, but the specifics aren't settled until September, with the recordings made in mid-December. By 2009, the lectures had expanded to a series of five sessions each year. However, in 2010 the Royal Institution cut back on costs as it had become over £2 million in debt. These cost cutting measures included the budget allotted to the Christmas Lectures. This resulted in a reduction from five sessions to three. Television The Christmas Lectures were first televised in 1936 on the BBC's fledgling Television Service. http://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/6424a3e20cf3442aa89fe74b6b6f4859 They were broadcast on BBC Two from 1966–1999 and Channel 4 from 2000–2004. In 2000 one of the lectures was broadcast live for the first time. Following the end of Channel 4's contract to broadcast the lectures, there were concerns that they might simply be dropped from scheduling as the channel was negotiating with the Royal Institution over potential changes to the format, while the BBC announced that "The BBC will not show the lectures again, because it feels the broadcasting environment has moved on in the last four years." Channel Five subsequently agreed to show the lectures from 2005–2008, an announcement which was met with derision from academics. The lectures were broadcast on More4 in 2009. In 2010, the lectures returned to the BBC after a ten-year absence from the broadcaster, and have been shown on BBC Four each year since then. List of Christmas lectures The following is a complete list of the Christmas Lectures : References External links *Christmas Lectures online (The Ri Channel) * Category:Recurring events established in 1825 Category:Royal Institution Christmas Lectures Christmas Lectures Category:Christmas in the United Kingdom Category:Education in London Category:Lecture series Category:Science education in the United Kingdom Category:December events Category:Science and technology in the United Kingdom Category:BBC Television programmes Category:Channel 4 television programmes Category:Channel 5 (UK) television programmes Category:1825 establishments in the United Kingdom Category:Annual events in the United Kingdom Category:1936 television series debuts